Migrate Gmail to another email provider (IMAP, free)

1. 1

   Turn on 2-Step Verification

   Sign in at myaccount.google.com, open Security and switch on 2-Step Verification if it is not active yet. Google only offers app passwords on accounts that have it, so nothing else works until this is done.

2. 2

   Check that IMAP is allowed

   Personal Gmail accounts have IMAP available by default, and Google has removed the old on/off switch. On Google Workspace, ask your administrator to allow IMAP access in the Admin console, because it is controlled per organisation.

3. 3

   Create the app password

   In your Google account search for App passwords, give the password a name such as "Mail migration" and create it. Google shows a 16-character code once. Copy it straight away, spaces are not needed.

4. 4

   Add the mailbox to the tool

   Open the migration tool below with Gmail already selected as the source. Type your full address and paste the app password in the old password field, then test the login before anything moves.

5. 5

   Confirm and start the copy

   Choose the destination provider and mailbox, open the confirmation message that arrives in the destination inbox, and the copy begins. Afterwards you can delete the app password from your Google account.

These are the values the tool fills in when you pick Gmail as the source. Gmail exposes its labels as IMAP folders, so you will see them listed as folders at the destination.

Passwords are used once. They travel encrypted to an isolated job that copies the mail and is deleted afterwards. They are never stored, logged or sent back.

• "Username and password not accepted" or "Invalid credentials"

  You probably typed your normal Google password. IMAP logins from outside apps need the app password. Create one, paste it without editing and test again. If the option to create app passwords does not appear, see the next point.

• No "App passwords" option in your account

  Google may hide it when 2-Step Verification is off, when you only use security keys, with Advanced Protection, or on accounts managed by a work or school organisation. Ask the Workspace admin to enable it, or use a different account for the copy.

• The login is refused on a Workspace account

  Workspace admins can block IMAP or app passwords for the whole domain, and Google no longer lets third-party apps sign in with a plain password on many Workspace setups. The admin has to allow IMAP and app passwords, or the tool cannot connect.

• "Too many simultaneous connections"

  Gmail limits how many clients can be connected to one account at the same time, around fifteen. Close mail apps on phones and computers that are still connected, wait a few minutes and run the copy again. It resumes where it left off.

Gmail does not use real folders. A message with three labels shows up in three IMAP folders, so the destination can end up with the same message in several places, and the folder count looks larger than your label list. "All Mail", Spam and Trash are folders too, and they are copied like the rest. Starred and important markers are Gmail features and may not map to anything at the new provider. Chats, Google Drive attachments links and calendar entries are not part of IMAP, so only the actual messages travel.

• Free, no signup

  No account and no payment. It copies up to 10 mailboxes per batch.

• Passwords are used once

  They serve that copy and are never stored. Nothing is deleted from the source mailbox either.

• The destination must be yours

  We leave a confirmation message in the destination inbox. The copy starts only when you open it.

• IMAP migration tool

  Any source and destination, with every provider and the limits.

• Yahoo Mail

  Yahoo Mail with an app password.

• iCloud Mail

  iCloud Mail with an app-specific password.

• Zoho Mail

  Zoho Mail and its regional servers.

• Professional email at Hostbrid

  If Hostbrid is where the mail is going, see the email plans.